The quarter-final stage of the 7th Elite Men’s National Boxing Championships witnessed remarkable performances from Amit Panghal, the 2019 World Championships silver medalist (51kg), and 2021 Asian Champion Sanjeet (92kg). The duo along with 10 other boxers, all from Services secured their places in the semi-finals with commanding victories on day five in Shillong.
Panghal faced Mohammad Aarif of Jammu and Kashmir in his quarter-final bout. The Worlds medallist demonstrated his experience, dominated the proceedings throughout and ultimately won the bout comfortably in a unanimous decision. Panghal will next face Ankit of RSPB in the semi-finals.
Meanwhile, Sanjeet went head to head against 2018 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Naman Tanwar of RSPB in the 92kg quarter-final. Sanjeet was at the top of his game as he controlled the bout and played from a distance, landing hard punches throughout. He continued the momentum and grabbed the win with a unanimous decision. Sanjeet will take on All India Police’s Vicky in the semi-finals.
The other 10 Services boxers who qualified for the semi-finals include Barun Singh (48kg), Pawan (54kg), Sachin (57kg), Akash (60kg), Vanshaj (63.5kg), Rajat (67kg), Akash (71kg), Deepak (75kg), Lakshya (80kg), Jugnoo (86kg).
In other significant bouts, the six-time Asian Championships medalist Shiva Thapa representing Assam, dominated his quarter-final match against Shashank Pradhan of Delhi. He secured a commanding 5-0 victory and will square off against Harivansh Tawari of Maharashtra in the semi-finals.
2022 Commonwealth Games silver medallist Sagar (92+kg), who represents RSPB, was up against Navjot Singh of Chandigarh. He started the bout with an aggressive approach and landed a flurry of hard hitting punches in the first round itself that led to the referee stopping the contest. He will face Vishal Kumar of Delhi in the last four stages.